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Wilmington-area Arts & Entertainment

The Bots (Mikaiah and Anaiah Lei) will perform 8 p.m. May 9 at Orton’s Music & Billards in Wilmington. — Jesse Jacobs photo

Brothers Mikaiah and Anaiah Leil are two of the many teenage boys who started a rock band while in high school. But, unlike most of those guys, who leave those rock n’ roll dreams on the graduation stage, they bucked that trend and turned their band, The Bots, into a full-fledged music career. The rock duo now tours with bands such as the Dropkick Murphys and has recorded three self-produced albums while preparing to turn its new EP, “Sincerely Silent,” into a full-length album for release later this summer.

Friday, the duo will make their first trip to Wilmington to perform 8 p.m. May9 at Orton’s Music & Billiards (135 N. Front St.). Performing with them will be The Hell No and The Manimals. Tickets are $5 and can be purchased through eTix.

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How were the The Bots formed?

Mikaiah Leil: We formed the band as a garage rock band in high school. Over the years, we were just the last members of the band and we kind continued to work with it. Now, seven or eight years later, here we are doing it professionally and we’re very grateful for the success we have found with the band and the experiences we have had.

How you would describe your style of music?

It is always different when we write things in the studio and then play it on stage. When performing, the music tends to be a bit faster and more raw than it is on the record. So the music lives two different lives. When we go for our sound, we are a rock band, that is what we like to call it. It is all about dynamics and about keeping things textually interesting.

Who are you influenced by? What bands do you find inspire your music?

I listen to all the music we don’t sound like, honestly. In fact, I don’t really listen to music to sound like it. I listen to classical music, and there are certain breaks that will inspire certain elements and bits in our tunes. But it is not that it sounds classical or anything like that. I listen to everything and feel like we appreciate all kinds of music. Our influences come from anywhere, really. If you’re a passionate person and you’re inspired by life, then that can be your thing that helps you write songs.

You mentioned that your music lives two lives — one on the record and one on the stage. So how would you describe you live shows?

Anaiah: A lot of energy.

Mikaiah: (laughs) I feel like most bands do that though. If you listen to any record, you can hear the studio quality and not everything from the studio can be replicated on stage. That’s what makes it a live show and raw and really rock n’ roll.

This will be your first time in Wilmington, so are you guys excited to be performing somewhere you haven’t yet?

Anaiah: We are always excited to play a place we have never been to. Whatever town or city it may be, it is always fun.

About This Blog

The WAE: Wilmington-area Arts & Entertainment is dedicated to experiencing, discussing and promoting the arts in Southeastern N.C. From theater and all manner of music to visual art, dance, festivals and more, The WAE is populated by people who are immersed in local A&E. If it’s about A&E in Southeastern N.C., then we’re all about it.